New Message
by jennytothemax
Summary: When the work day is slow, Elli and Angela exchange emails with each other, filling each other in on their lives, sharing gossip and work stories about the opposite gender or that darn printer that always jams. And Gill... Gill just reads them.
1. Chapter 1

_A/N: Is this...is this the real life? Is this just fantasy? Caught in a landslide. No escape from reality._

 _No, but really. Is any of this real? Is this...*gasp*...a yearly update? (Well, close anyway.)_

 _I recently finished my second year of college (and I feel dead), and I've just been lazing around at home, doing who knows what. Actually, I decided to pick up_ Harvest Moon: Animal Parade _just a few days ago, and I'm falling in love with the game all over again. Hence, this story. Also, have you read this book called_ Attachments _by Rainbow Rowell? Well, my inspiration for this story was born from that. I really liked the idea of Gill following the exchange of emails between Elli and Angela, but not quite for the same reason that the main character of that book does it haha. I don't plan on following the plot of_ Attachments _or anything. I will just be borrowing ideas here and there._

 _Will I abandon this story like I have all the others? ...I can make no promises. But hopefully, my writing has gotten better over the years? It's been years since I last wrote anything Harvest Moon related, and I recently took a "writing poetry" class (It was a pre-requisite for the other creative writing classes), so I sure hope so._

 _One last thing: I was getting real frustrated by the limitations on formatting on this website. Why can't I use the right and left arrowhead symbols (or the 'greater than' and 'less than' signs, whatever you call them)? I was originally using those for the email exchange, and then the Doc Manager went and deleted all of them, so I had to go through and add in brackets [ ] in their place._

 _Anyway, enjoy the story!_ :)

* * *

CHAPTER 01

* * *

From: Elli Doyle  
To: Angela Green  
Sent: Wed, Spring 04, 8:37 AM  
Subject: URGENT; LATE PERIOD

I think I might be pregnant…

[Angela to Elli] You don't sound particularly happy about that. I thought you always wanted to be a mother.

[Elli to Angela] Well, that doesn't mean I don't have doubts about it. What if it doesn't work out? What if I'm a terrible mother? What if I get even fatter, and Jeff wises up and leaves me?

[Angela to Elli] Okay. First of all, you're not fat. Not even a little bit fat. What made you think that you were? Second, Jeff loves you so much, he would never leave you. Third, you have the strongest maternal instincts of anyone I've ever known. And you're sweet, thoughtful, loving...you'd be a great mother.

[Elli to Angela] Because Popuri is so thin. She never gets fat. I really wanna go on a diet and lose some weight, but Jeff is always saying that dieting isn't healthy and that he likes chubby girls… But what if the pregnancy makes me swell up so much, that he'll think I'm _too_ chubby? And then I'll be left alone to care for the baby on my own. Maternal instincts or not, I just don't think I could raise a child completely by myself...

[Angela to Elli] Okay, Jeff shouldn't ever say that you're chubby. That's just not true, and you should knock some sense into him. But Elli, if you truly love your husband, you'll have more faith in him. He won't leave you. Trust me. I've seen you two together. The sight is so saccharine, I almost wanna gag. In a good way, of course. The two of you look so in love… But that's exactly why it makes me sick.

[Elli to Angela] I do love him. You're right. I need to believe that he'll love me no matter what I look like. I mean, he chose to marry me even after...well, you didn't see me before I started working here. I really was chubby. I've just lost some weight since then. Nobody wants to see an ugly weathergirl on the TV. It wasn't easy either, being surrounded by all those cakes, pies, and pastries in the bakery all the time.

[Angela to Elli] Elli, you are not ugly. I'm not just saying this because you're my friend. No matter what you weigh, you really are beautiful. I wish I could look half as good as you. Have you seen your ratings? Everyone thinks you're the cutest thing.

[Elli to Angela] Aww, Angela… You're really cute too! ^ ^

[Angela to Elli] Okay, enough of this now. Sorry, but I just don't wanna go back and forth saying, "You're the cute one," "No, you are," "No, you." I've seen and heard it enough with all these couples milling about… You and Jeff included.

[Elli to Angela] Right, right. Speaking of couples, how was that date you had the other day? I never got to hear the details!

[Angela to Elli] It was okay.

[Elli to Angela] Okay? Just _okay_? That's all I get?

[Angela to Elli] Hey, weren't we talking about your unborn child here?

[Elli to Angela] Don't change the subject. And, it's just a hunch, I don't actually know if I'm pregnant yet. I've already scheduled an appointment to see the clinic doctor in a few days. I'm still scared, of course, but what you said helped calm me down. I guess I'll just do the rational thing and have a talk with Jeff tonight.

[Angela to Elli] It's not changing the subject if that's what we were initially talking about. And I bet Jeff is just going to be ecstatic about being a dad. I can see him now. Shuffling around the bakery, unable to contain his excitement. Not even a month pregnant, but I bet he wouldn't let you lift a finger, afraid you'll overexert yourself.

[Elli to Angela] Haha, that sounds like him! He worries too much sometimes. But don't think I haven't forgotten: I expect lots of details about your date when I see you. The whole thing. From beginning to end.

[Angela to Elli] Maybe, maybe. If I'm feeling up to it.

Gill stared at his laptop screen, reading yesterday's emails. Not his emails. Theirs. The conversations between Elli and this Angela person.

Yes, reading personal mail not addressed to you is wrong. This, Gill knew. But if they wanted to send private messages like these, they should use their own personal devices. Any employee should have known that their email would be monitored when using the work computers; they were notified of this for legal reasons.

Maybe they just didn't care then? Or maybe they didn't really think anyone in their right mind would seriously rifle through their messages. It's not like they were sending nuclear launch codes. And they were far from being deemed inappropriate. Just a waste of work time, really. (Gill made a mental note to write to Elli about her productivity.)

Either way, it was no bluff. Any emails sent and received through the Town Hall employee server were sent to Gill. And yes, he read them. _Meticulously_. Yes, Gill knew how time consuming this was, but there weren't many employees there to begin with. And his father, the mayor, still hadn't transitioned into the age of technology, so much of the paperwork done was still on...well, paper. Large filing cabinets of records and other important documents still filled the building. The few computers in the Town Hall were mainly for show and to play solitaire on slow days. They were big and clunky, but Mayor Hamilton was alienated nonetheless. He just couldn't warm up to the computers, so he never felt the need to upgrade when he didn't even want them to begin with. The public computers in the library were just as outdated.

He knew he could have set up an email monitoring software to flag specific words or phrases, but Gill found this to be more thorough. Emails could easily slip through if the software didn't recognize some new slang or a euphemism. There could be no room for error. Everything had to be perfect. And Gill's discerning eye and judgment were perfect. Almost.

Was he obsessive? Maybe. But his mind wouldn't be at peace otherwise. Everything had to be _perfect._

Gill had been away from home for quite some time. He needed the space. But also...he worried incessantly about the town when he was away. What if his father starts a widespread fire trying to use the microwave in the staff lounge? What if his father accidentally sells the deed to the town in what he thought was a cardboard box of old knick-knacks at the Flea Market? What if his father emails Gill's baby pictures to the entire town?

The town would be in ruins without him around.

And that is how he rationalized his decision to monitor work emails. Yes, he realized most of these scenarios revolved around his own father's clumsy nature, but that's why he needed to keep a constant watch over the Town Hall, even if he didn't have a physical presence there. Because you know, Goddess forbid one of the Town Hall workers forward a popular cat video to the entire LISTSERV.

No matter how insignificant it seemed. Everything. Must. Be. _Perfect._


	2. Chapter 2

_A/N: Hello, sorry for the delay. I have no excuse except for the one that I always use: adult responsibilities like finding a job to pay for those dreadfully huge college tuition fees, trying not to feel like total garbage, and simply trying to create a social life for myself (hint: I don't have one)._

 _I'm not too happy with the end product, but here it is. There's just something about the writing that I'm not satisfied with. I'm hoping things will fall into place as the story progresses though._

* * *

CHAPTER 02

* * *

From: Angela Green  
To: Elli Doyle  
Sent: Thu, Spring 05, 4:29 PM  
Subject: What I saw at work today...

You should have seen it, Elli. Mayor Hamilton seemed to be wrestling with one of the computers today. "Vile machine!" he called it.

[Elli to Angela] Oh my! What set him off like that?

[Angela to Elli] I'm not sure exactly. I think he was trying to print something out but got frustrated. Honestly, I think it was the printer he should have been angry with. That thing's been jamming without fail for the past week.

[Elli to Angela] Wait, so he wasn't literally wrestling with the computer, he was just struggling to get it to work?

[Angela to Elli] No, no, he really was wrestling with it. Well, beating down on it anyway... I think it was after his...eleventh attempt that he snapped?

[Elli to Angela] I never would have guessed. The mayor can be eccentric, yes, but I've rarely seen him actually get mad.

[Angela to Elli] Haha, well, I don't think Hamilton can do much damage to it with those pudgy fists of his. Those punches looked pretty soft. Even if he did manage to break it, it wouldn't be the worst thing in the world. These dinosaurs need to be replaced anyway.

[Elli to Angela] They're not that bad. At least, we can send emails to each other. And um...there are games too.

[Angela to Elli] Yes, solitaire and minesweeper are truly riveting… Oh, and 3D chess? Just amazing. And stunning graphics to boot.

Up until this point, Gill wasn't completely certain whether Angela actually worked at the Town Hall or not. But these emails confirmed that she did. He had never met her before. She must be new. And, frankly, his father needed all the help he could get, especially with Gill absent.

Mayor Hamilton, like every other doting parent, worried for his son's well-being and called to check on him every so often, but Angela never seemed to come up in conversation before, or at least, Gill couldn't recall hearing such a name from his father.

Gill knew his father. With a new villager in town, surely, he would have talked Gill's ear off about her. How exciting it would be to have her, how things were definitely going to change for the better with her around.

And the fact that she also happened to be female?

Well, let's just say, on more than one occasion has Gill's father tried setting him up with a girl. He wanted nothing more than his son's happiness after all…

 _…except grandchildren._

For the sake of ensuring that his glorious genes are passed on, Hamilton would approach just about anyone even remotely female, selling his son as if he were a brand spanking new car.

But nothing. Not a single word from his father about Angela.

Maybe she didn't live in town? She could have commuted to work like Elli did.

[Elli to Angela] Did I tell you that I got reprimanded the other day for my lack of productivity?

[Angela to Elli] Seriously? What happened? How could they even accuse you of that?

[Elli to Angela] Well, it was more like a light slap on the wrist. I think the computers here are monitored. They must get records of internet traffic or something, so they know I've been using my email a lot.

[Angela to Elli] And here we are, emailing each other while I'm still at work. So, can they like see all the messages we send each other? Should we maybe, I dunno, stop emailing each other when either of us are at work then?

[Elli to Angela] I'm not exactly sure how it works. But with you working only part-time, we almost never get to see each other. As soon as I finish work, I have to travel back home to Flowerbud Village.

[Angela to Elli] And I can't afford a cell phone…

[Elli to Angela] You're not afraid whether someone could be reading our emails?

[Angela to Elli] No, not really. I got nothing to hide. Are you?

[Elli to Angela] Not if you aren't. I don't mean to take advantage of his lenient nature, but Mayor Hamilton wasn't exactly mad at me. He just said to try to not let these exchanges distract me from work too much.

[Angela to Elli] Wow, he let you off real easy.

Hey. You know, something seems strangely off about this though…

[Elli to Angela] What do you mean?

[Angela to Elli] Mayor Hamilton is by no means a computer wiz. It doesn't matter if our emails are monitored, I don't think he could figure out how to access any of them. So, how could he have known about any of this?

You don't think… _No_.

Could this be…?

You don't think the mayor is just some figurehead, do you? What if there's a puppetmaster working behind the scenes?

You see this, Puppetmaster? I'm onto you!

[Elli to Angela] Angela, no! Don't provoke them!

[Angela to Elli] Elli, if I don't show up to work anymore...well...you'll know the truth.

Gill let a soft chuckle escape before abruptly clearing his throat. He would never admit it out loud, but he found their conversation to be somewhat entertaining. This, however, did not excuse the fact that they were still wasting precious work hours to goof off.

Though, he was a bit surprised to find that neither of them remembered that their emails and internet usage were indeed monitored while at work.

Nevertheless, Angela was still able to pick up on the fact there was someone watching them, and Gill had to give her credit for that. Maybe Gill shouldn't have told his father about Elli's inefficient use of time. No harm done after all…

No. If he let this slide, their slacking habit would surely worsen. Gill had to be firm in his judgment. They didn't have to like it.

 _Tattletale_ reverberated through his mind like it did all those years back. His classmates had labeled him as a "Teacher's Pet" growing up, but Gill hardly found that to be an insult. If he had simply stood by and watched his classmates, Gill may as well have been the one to commit the rule-breaking himself. To remain silent to win the favor of his peers would mean to give up his integrity.

Ah yes, those dark days of primary school- Gill had never been the most popular kid around. His teachers often showered him with high praise, but they had their concerns as well. As brilliant as he was, Gill was "having difficulty socializing with the others," they had said.

"School is a place for learning, not socializing," he had argued.

It wasn't until he started high school that he decided to rescind that statement. Well, not completely.

Gill needed only one ally: his girlfriend- well, his ex-girlfriend- Luna. She was something of an enigma to him. Night and day, they were, yet she had a determination like no other woman Gill knew, that could only rival his own. While Gill had frequented the school library, isolating himself from the class, she had surrounded herself with handfuls of friends. She broke down that wall he had oh-so-carefully built around himself. She frustrated him, but he loved her.

She made him mad, in all senses of the word. He was mad in love. He was mad in the head. Mad. He was just mad.

He slammed his fist onto his desk and exhaled deeply. "Calm down," he muttered to himself, rubbing his temples. He took another glance at the emails before closing the monitoring software.

Gill spent the remainder of that night browsing selections of computer monitors on various electronics sites.


End file.
